Ghoul
A''' Ghoul is an Arabic, 'folkloric creature associated with graveyards and consuming human flesh. The oldest surviving literature that mention ghouls is Arabian Nights''. The term was first used in English literature in 1786, in William Beckford's Orientalist novel Vathek, which describes the ghūl of Arabian folklore. Name in Arabic Ghoul is from the Arabic '''الغول '''ghul, from ghala "to seize". Marc Cramer and others believe the term to be etymologically related to Gallu, a Middle Eastern demon. In Middle Eastern Folklore In ancient Arabian folklore, the ghūl (Arabic: literally demon) dwells in burial grounds and other uninhabited places. The ghul is a fiendish type of jinn believed to be sired by Iblis. A ghul is also a desert-dwelling, shapeshifting, evil demon that can assume the guise of an animal, especially a hyena. It lures unwary people into the desert wastes or abandoned places to slay and devour them. The creature also preys on young children, drinks blood, steals coins, and eats the dead, then taking the form of the person most recently eaten. In the Arabic language, the female form is given as ghouleh and the plural is ghilan. In colloquial Arabic, the term is sometimes used to describe a greedy or gluttonous individual. Description Ghouls who are well-fed on human flesh are indistinguishable from normal humans. The longer a ghoul goes without feeding, the less human it looks. A ghoul in the later stages of starvation will be extremely thin and pale, with veins clearly visible through the skin, and will have long, claw-like nails. Adaptations Ghouls have the ability to take on the abilities and appearance any person whose body they have eaten. Some ancient stories claim that ghouls can also turn into jackals, hyenas, or other animals, but so far the ghoul’s ability to take on animal form remains unverified. Ghouls also tend to be slightly stronger than humans. Vulnerabilities Ghouls must eat human flesh on a regular basis in order to survive. A ghoul who denies his hunger for flesh for too long will begin to suffer the physical effects of starvation (even if he eats other food) and will suffer mental deterioration. As the condition grows worse, the ghoul loses all semblance of humanity. Biology and Habitat There are several theories regarding the origin of ghouls. The three most common are that ghouls are a type of demon, the result of demon and human cross-breeding, or normal humans who suffer from an ancestral curse. The fact that ghouls are genetically indistinguishable from humans seems to suggest the latter, but the existence of shapeshifters who can mimic humans down to the cellular level means that it’s impossible to rule out a demonic origin. Because ghouls are able to take on the form of any human whose flesh they have eaten, those who are careful to conceal their eating habits can operate in human society. Even if they are caught, ghouls are often initially mistaken for human cannibals, with their true nature only revealed when they are deprived of human flesh. Some civil rights activists have suggested that allowing an imprisoned ghoul to become ravening beast due to hunger constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. However, the small number of cases, mental deterioration of the affected prisoners, and disturbing nature of the alternative have prevented any real legal exploration of the question to date. In order to avoid starvation, a ghoul needs consume an enormous amount of human flesh (10-15 pounds per day). Those who do not begin to suffer the effects of starvation, eventually becoming inhuman predators. While most ghoul children are raised on human flesh, they do not seem to suffer the effects of deprivation until they reach puberty. Although ghouls reproduce normally, some ghoul families believe that it is necessary to breed with humans in order to prevent their bloodlines from becoming inbred to the point of weakness. Families who follow this tradition typically believe that offspring between a human and a ghoul will only be produced if the human has first been buried alive or imprisoned in a crypt for at least 24 hours prior to mating. It is not known whether or not there is any truth to this superstition, or if all children who result from such unions become ghouls. Human women impregnated by male ghouls are typically held captive until the child is born, then killed and eaten. Human men who mate with female ghouls have a considerably shorter expected lifespan. Sightings Ghouls have been reported throughout history in every part of the world. Although several ghouls have been captured in recent history, the two most widely-publicized American ghoul case involved the Sawyer family, who are believed to have killed over 200 people in Texas during the 1970s and 80s. Most members of the clan were killed by a group of victims and police in 1986, but at least one is believed to have escaped. In 2003, two survivors described their encounter with (and self-defense slaying of) a similar family, also believed to be ghouls, in rural West Virginia. Most of M-Force’s information about ghouls is derived from interviews with a captured ghoul conducted by Mike Mulligan in the late 1960s. Classification The Bureau of Monster Affairs has yet to determine the exact nature of ghouls. Since they may in fact be cursed human (much like werewolves), they are not listed on the Official Monster List and are subject to the same guidelines regarding use of deadly force as humans. Furthermore, since it is all but impossible to prove that a person is a ghoul until starvation sets in, suspected ghouls must be afforded the same rights as any other American citizen. If an M-Force agent has evidence that the suspected ghoul has been involved in a crime (typically grave robbing, kidnapping, identity theft, or murder), he should turn the evidence over to police so that they can conduct a criminal investigation. Without some evidence of wrong-doing on the part of the suspected ghoul, there is very little M-Force or the authorities can do without potentially violating an innocent citizen’s constitutional rights. The only exception to these guidelines is for ghouls who have reached the point of total starvation. At this point, the creature is easily identifiable, beyond any chance of redemption, and a threat to human life and may be dealt with accordingly. Poll Do you think a Ghoul is real? Yes, it's Real Yes, it's a wendigo No, it must be hoax No, it just misunderstanding Not sure, arrrgh!!! i'm confused Hey, it's just a ghost lol, an alien Category:Humanoids Category:Asian cryptids Category:North America (Minus Mexico and Caribbean) Category:Cryptids Category:European cryptids Category:Cryptid Wiki Category:Southeast Asia Category:Africa